


come dawn

by Shinkirou



Category: Final Fantasy IX
Genre: Community: cottoncandy_bingo, Daily December, Developing Relationship, Fluff, Gift Fic, Implied Future Character Death, M/M, Prompt Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-20
Updated: 2012-12-20
Packaged: 2017-11-21 18:04:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/600622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shinkirou/pseuds/Shinkirou
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Just your average night.</p>
            </blockquote>





	come dawn

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Chaos_Silk (CrimsonChaos)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrimsonChaos/gifts).



> Bingo Square was "evening". Sort of kind of veered a little.

It's only evening, Zidane notes with no small measure of bitterness. It's already getting cold; it'll be freezing later, he's sure. It is a palace in the middle of the desert, after all, and sand doesn't exactly stay warm, but Kuja usually keeps the entire place running at a fairly high temperature, so Zidane snuggles into the sheets where he'd been napping a little more and assumes Kuja will return from wherever he wandered off too soon enough.

A few minutes later when that doesn't seem to be the case, Zidane gets up, rubs his eyes blearily and wanders into an adjoined room filled with books, but smaller than the actual library (honestly, Kuja doesn't need half the space he has), with huge plush pillows here and there, and finds Kuja asleep on a few of them, a book clutched lightly in his hand in front of his face where he'd obviously fallen asleep. A candle flickers nearby and Zidane nearly panics before realizing that the flame was obviously powered by Kuja's magic and thus wouldn't burn anything unless directed to. Still, he carefully picks his way across the room, dodging the piles of books on the floor, and moves the candle just a little further from the books, just to be on the safe side.

After the candle is a little safer, Zidane clambers up onto the excessively large pillow that Kuja is - was - sleeping on, as he wakes with the movement and blinks owlishly at Zidane before asking, "Cold?"

Zidane gives a slight one armed shrug. "Not really. Kinda. I'm sure it'll be worse later, don't bother expanding any energy on it yet. Was wondering where you went."

"Well, as you can see I did not venture far." Kuja shifts, sitting up and putting the book on the table next to the candle before laying back down, but not before shooting Zidane a bemused look - he'd noticed the candle had moved, then. "I was growing bored so I came here to pass time."

Zidane laughed. "Only to fall asleep here. Well it's warm in here, and really dim, so it's no wonder you did."  
Kuja hums in agreement before moving to sit up, only to have Zidane shove him back down and flop beside him. Kuja snorts, shifting slightly to give Zidane a little more room - the pillows are large enough that even with the two of them, there's still a bit more room; though, fitting a third person would be something of a balancing act, if even possible. Still, they're not forced to squish together or anything, so Zidane drops one arm between them, the other resting on his stomach, laying flat on his back. Kuja picks up his book again and continues reading silently, until Zidane asks him to read out loud.

Kuja laughs, then does without hesitation, though not with the same flair he usually puts into it. Zidane can't begrudge him that, though, he _did_ just wake up. So instead he just lays back and mouths a few of the lines every once in a while. Zidane would rather fold his free arm under his head, but Kuja's too close and would get elbowed, so he doesn't, just shifts it a little by his side. It's something of a comfortable arrangement anyway, and the room really is warm even though there are only a few candles lit and scattered throughout the room.

After a few minutes, the dim lighting is enough to make his eyes slip shut against his will, and Kuja's voice is quiet and soothing, too, and soon Zidane finds himself shifting a bit closer to Kuja subconsciously as he dozes off. Kuja stops reading, but the blond barely notices until there are fingers brushing his bangs out of his face and a soft pair of lips pressed quickly against his forehead. He feels Kuja stretch to put the book back on the table, trying not to jostle him too much, and he smiles, cuddling closer on purpose now, rolled up on his side. Kuja doesn't shove him away, for once, and while Zidane is mildly surprised, he's not complaining.

A second later, Kuja's rolling onto his side so that they would be face to face if the blond wasn't so much shorter (a fact that Kuja reminds him of frequently). They're not cuddling or anything, not really, since each of them have one arm between their bodies, but Zidane feels warm and happy none the less. He falls asleep easily, not even noticing the candles go out or the blanket being pulled up over him, or the fact that their elbows bump as they both fold their free arms under their heads.

\- - - - -

He's never sure which one of them wakes up first, because their eyes always seem to meet at the same time, though Kuja always looks so awake that Zidane wonders how long he has been. Never asks, though, just curiously thinks about it when he wakes up. He does notice that he always seems to shift upward a little in his sleep though - usually he'll fall asleep with his head closer to Kuja's chest and wake up near his throat, or sometimes even perfectly at eye level, though he always wakes up further back on those days. Kuja probably shoves him, he thinks, and laughs abruptly at the mental image of Kuja waking up and immediately shoving Zidane backwards because it's so _fitting_. Kuja gives him a strange look at his random burst of laughter, but doesn't comment on it, instead sitting up and waiting for Zidane to move. Of course, the blond has no intention on getting up anytime soon - the sun's barely hanging in the sky, seriously, who wakes up this early voluntarily! - so he doesn't budge. Kuja doesn't seem to care, choosing instead to cheat and just glide over Zidane, only to have that backfire when Zidane grabs him out of the air by the foot and pulls him back down, nearly missing the edge of the pillow.

There's a slight scuffle as Kuja squirms to break free without really trying, and Zidane just laughs and tells him to sleep a bit longer. With an overly dramatic sigh, Kuja allows himself to rest again, this time lying flat on his back and humming for a few seconds to lull Zidane back to sleep.

Zidane doesn't expect Kuja to go back to sleep, not really, so he's not surprised when he wakes up to see Kuja reading the same play as he had been the night before. Kuja notices that Zidane is awake before he can pretend otherwise, and smiles slightly at him before telling him that it's almost noon. Indeed, the slits of light that filter in past the edges of the curtains are bright and strong, and looking at them makes his eyes hurt so Zidane looks back to Kuja quickly enough.

They don't talk all that much during the days, perhaps surprisingly, given how prone they are to talking in general. Kuja prefers to read while it's still bright (though that does not mean by any stretch that he won't read all night, it just means he prefers the natural light to candles), and Zidane passes time hunting the dwindling number of monsters that still roam the palace and exploring. It seems like every time he's sure he's got the place mapped in his mind, a new room pops up, and Kuja has had to come find him on more than one occasion (which Zidane will, of course, vehemently deny ever happening if asked).

They'll eat together, and sleep in the same bed because there's only one - of course there are other places either of them could sleep, such as on the pillows they slept on last night, but desert nights are cold and without magic, it gets terribly frigid, and once Kuja falls asleep he isn't concerned about actively monitoring the temperature any more except for near himself. Zidane doesn't really mind, anyway, because Kuja's a very good sleeper - doesn't kick or talk in his sleep or anything - except for on the bad nights, which they don't talk about, because neither really wants to remember that he's dying. Still, on those nights Zidane sleeps a little closer than usual, and Kuja doesn't push him away as he usually would. Sometimes, if the nightmares are particularly bad, Zidane finds himself practically pulled flush against Kuja.

That's another thing - they're living together, sure, but Zidane doesn't usually see Kuja's defences drop even a little. It's not like he acts tense or anything, but he just seems so calm and indifferent that Zidane can't help but wonder what sorts of horrible things he's thinking, given the strength of the nightmares. Still, Kuja almost never even lightens up except for when it's night time. If it's dark out, Zidane can ask him to read out loud, or come sit with him, or tell him other stories, or any number of other things that he would be denied were it still bright out. Zidane hasn't figured out why, but knows that it's a step in the right direction, anyway. He'd still prefer if Kuja would be a little more honest about his feelings, but never pushes it, because really, Kuja's been through more than enough already without Zidane pestering him.

Of course, thanks to all of that, Zidane much prefers when it's dark outside, because the cold is a good excuse to go find Kuja. He doesn't really need one - it's not like Kuja ever tells him to go adventuring in the mornings (in fact, quite the opposite - Kuja keeps telling him not to wander off because, as he says, "if you get lost again I will not come after you this time." He always does.), and Zidane knows he could stick around, but it's mostly because he'd probably go stir crazy if he stayed in one room all day. He can leave the palace any time, of course - it's not like Kuja is forcing him to stay or anything, but he finds he doesn't really want to. The time they have left to spend together is pretty short anyway, so Zidane won't leave until it's up... Which is kind of a morbid thought, really, but that's the way it is.

When night time rolls around again, Zidane doesn't even bother going to bed, knowing Kuja will still be up reading, and wanders back into that same room. Sure enough, perched on the same pillow as last time sits Kuja, focus completely caught by the book he's reading. It takes Zidane a moment to notice that it's a different play from the one he had been reading the night before. Curious, he wanders closer, knowing that eventually Kuja will notice his presence, and sits on the pillow next to him, trying to read the cover.

It takes Zidane a few seconds to realize it isn't a play at all, but one of Garland's journals.

He's sure Kuja's already memorized the entire thing, really, but doesn't begrudge Kuja's persistence - if they can find a way for Kuja to live _without_ Zidane having to die, that's definitely not a bad thing. They still haven't really ever talked about Kuja's impending death, but Zidane knows it's bothering him.

Well, it's bugging Zidane himself, too, of course - it feels like a cruel joke, finally getting past all the bad blood and actually getting to know Kuja, only to have time slipping away quite rapidly. Zidane thinks it must be even worse for Kuja, knowing that every day is bringing you closer to a demise that has a firm date set on it.

Kuja pokes Zidane in the forehead, and Zidane startles, realizing Kuja must have been trying to get his attention for quite some time, judging by the mildly amused look on his face. Zidane laughs quietly, shaking his head to clear the depressing thoughts - right now he should either be helping Kuja search for a reversal, or he should be treasuring the time they have left.

Without any thought, Zidane shifts up and kisses Kuja on the forehead, earning a confused glance. But Kuja doesn't comment, and Zidane curls up against him anyway, Kuja shifting to accommodate him after a moment.

They may not have much time left, but if there's no cure to be found, Zidane will at least make sure Kuja's last days are amazing. Zidane smiles, and Kuja must feel it because he makes a noise of questioning, but Zidane just shakes his head.

There are things to be done.

**Author's Note:**

> Was also part of my daily December challenge (which I've long since failed) over on my LJ, as well as a gift for chaos-silk (who apparently has an account here, too!).


End file.
